Studies on Gender and Media Representation in Macedonia (2012-2013)

Studies on Gender and Media Representation in Macedonia (2012-2013)

Two Studies on Gender and Media Representation in Macedonia, commissioned by the National Broadcasting Council (published in October 2012 and November 2013) were conducted by the Institute of social sciences and humanities – Skopje.

The analysis address the gender issues in the program concepts and content developed by the National Broadcasting Council as a regulatory institution authorized to perform improvement measure of the TV programs.

The content analysis and the discursive analysis of two studies were conducted on four different samples of TV programs, with four different instruments, questionnaires (two for each year).

Several national televisions which were included in the analysis, are the ones with the highest influence on the public. The samples from news and informational programs were used primarily for analysis of gender issues, while the samples referred to entertainment shows (in 2012) and ads (in 2013) were used for analysis of the presentation of males and females.

The methodology used in both researches was based on qualitative analysis (types of speech and representation as methodological approach), but quantitative data were used as well.

The research showed a much greater presence of men, compared to women. Regarding informational contents, we can conclude that there is no gender sensibility, except information of events. The gender-neutral language is used, meaning using only male gender nouns and adjectives. In the entertainment shows and ads, as expected, there is a presence of female bodies (but not active agents), sexist statements and presentation of the female body as object for entertainment. The representation of female and male gender roles in the commercials reflected strong stereotypes.

Undoubtedly, gender equality can be achieved through raising awareness of the public, and a key factor is electronic media. Besides reporting, media make the selection what and how much they are going to report. Thus, the choice to cover gender relevant topics listed above is a deliberate decision of the media. It is necessary to have a proactive inclusion of the televisions in the promotion of values regarding gender equality, which will overcome the gender asymmetry in the public discourse.

The recommendations after this analysis are:

• Increased presence of women who are experts or political authorities
• Inclusion of topics which directly regard issues of equal gender representation in the decision making structures
• Inclusion of topics of crucial interest for the gender equality in Macedonia
•To act proactively: to introduce gender non- stereotypical contents in TV shows
• Organizing trainings and debates on this problem.

Below are the two research and analysis reports. (available in Macedonian only)

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The Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities, Skopje (ISSHS) is a nonprofit research organization in applied social and humanities studies focusing mainly on multi-issue policy studies. It holds the status of a scientific institution in the fields of social sciences and humanities accorded by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Macedonia (Decision nr. 30).